People sometimes believe that they don’t need to do their estate planning yet, and they may even think that it’s detrimental to do it too early. When you talk to those who don’t have an estate plan – the majority of Americans – they will often say that they don’t think they need to make the plan yet and that they’re going to do it later on.
But is it actually a problem to do it too early? Or is this something that you should consider?
It is not too early
There are two reasons why it is never too early to make your estate plan. The first is simply that anyone can benefit in some way from the estate plan, regardless of their age. For example, young people sometimes lament the fact that they don’t have more financial assets and say that estate planning is not necessary yet. But they can still use the estate plan to make medical decisions and pass on the assets that they do own, so it is still beneficial.
The second reason that it’s not too early to make your estate plan is that it can be updated or adjusted at any time. So you don’t have to worry that making your plan today means that it’s not going to apply to you if you pass away in 40 years. You should just have an annual review or bi-annual review to check on the estate plan, make sure that it matches your current situation, and make any changes to bring it up to date.
If you’re interested in estate planning, be sure you know about all of your legal options and the steps you’ll need to take.